Recent development cooperation with Guinea-Bissau, focusing on good governance, statebuilding and conflict prevention, did not contribute to democratization nor to the stabilization of volatile political, military and economic structures. The portrayal of Guinea-Bissau as a failed 'narco-state', as well as Western aid meant to stabilize this state, are both based on dubious concepts. Certainly, the impact of drug trafficking could endanger democratization and state-building if continued unchecked. However, the most pressing need is not state-building facilitated by external aid that is poorly rooted in the social and political fabric of the country. Rather, it is grassroots nation-building that is a pre-condition for the creation of viable state institutions.

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eng

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German Institute of Global and Area Studies (GIGA) Hamburg

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GIGA working papers 123

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D72

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E26

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N47

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O17

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Z1

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300

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Guinea-Bissau

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elections

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democratization

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informal institutions

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aid

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nationbuilding

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institution building

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drug trafficking

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Demokratisierung

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Wahl

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Drogenwirtschaft

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Guinea-Bissau

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dc.title

Democratization via elections in an African 'narco-state'? The case of Guinea-Bissau